…emphasizing that all bills forwarded from the House of Representatives senate will be subjected to rigorous scrutiny.
Abuja, Nigeria – The iNews Times reports that the Senate President Godswill Akpabio has emphasized that all bills forwarded from the House of Representatives will be subjected to rigorous scrutiny before concurrence, asserting the Senate’s constitutional duty to evaluate legislation thoroughly rather than rubber-stamp it in the spirit of inter-chamber harmony.
Speaking during plenary on Tuesday, July 8, Akpabio reaffirmed the Senate’s commitment to legislative diligence, stating that the upper chamber had already taken action on several bills originating from the House and would continue doing so responsibly.
“Last week, we attended to about six of those bills, and this week, I don’t know how many, but at least I know we are going to do two today, and we’ll continue to do so,” Akpabio said.
He added, “Let our brothers in the House of Representatives know that we cannot joke with anything that comes from there. It takes two hands to clap, and we’ll continue to work together.”
His comments come in the wake of mounting frustration in the House of Representatives over what members perceive as undue delays in the red chamber concurrence.
On Wednesday, July 2, the House adopted a resolution to halt consideration of Senate-originated bills in protest, citing that over 140 House bills remained pending in the Senate. As part of the protest, the House stepped down two bills sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele.
In response, Bamidele clarified that the Senate had not neglected its responsibilities, highlighting that it had recently concurred with several House bills.
“Only last week, this Senate concurred to six bills from the House of Representatives,” Bamidele stated.
He added, “While we have the principle of chamber reciprocity, Mr. President, the principle does not necessarily mean for us garbage in, garbage out.”
He reiterated that the red chamber would continue to approach all concurrent legislation with careful consideration and in the best interest of Nigerians.
At Tuesday’s session, the red chamber approved two House-originated bills: the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons (Domestication and Enforcement) Bill, 2025, and the Food Vendors Registration Council of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024.
